According to Inc, solo founder Shlomo built and ran every part of Base44 himself, even waking up every few hours to check on it. Just one month after launching, the platform had generated nearly $1.5 million in revenue from subscriptions priced between $20 and $200 per month. The company caught the eye of Wix co-founder and CEO Avishai Abrahami. In May 2025, the two held three meetings at Abrahami’s home to discuss the startup’s future. The following month, in June 2025, Wix acquired the four-month-old company for $80 million. Shlomo continues to run Base44 as its own product within Wix.
The Grill And Deal Strategy
Look, the story is almost comically perfect. Solo founder grinds, hits instant product-market fit, gets wooed by a giant, and seals the deal over Wagyu steaks in the buyer’s backyard. It’s the startup fairy tale. But here’s the thing that stands out: Shlomo wasn’t actually looking to sell. He said he shut down and stopped taking meetings with all the VCs who came knocking after the revenue numbers hit. His interest in talking to Avishai seems to have been genuinely about learning how Wix scaled its marketing machine, not just cashing out. That’s a powerful position to negotiate from. When you’re not desperate, you can focus on strategic fit, not just the check. And getting invited for steaks with the CEO? That’s a level of courtship you don’t get from a standard M&A process.
The Solo Founder Crossroads
Shlomo’s reasoning is brutally honest and probably resonates with every successful solo founder. He felt he was at a crossroads: sell, or raise a huge round and start building a “real” company with a big team. That second path is a completely different life. It’s managing people, board meetings, and growth at all costs instead of pure product and profit. For someone who was handling everything from engineering to support, the allure of partnering with a scaled operator like Wix—while still running his product—must have been immense. It’s basically an escape from the operational grind without giving up the creative control. But is that sustainable long-term? Once you’re inside a public company like Wix, priorities can shift. The promise of autonomy is great until the parent company needs to hit its own quarterly numbers.
Why This Is Probably A Wix Talent Acquisition
Let’s be a bit skeptical for a second. Wix paid $80 million for a four-month-old product. That’s a wild multiple, even on that explosive first-month revenue. It feels a lot less like a pure product acquisition and a whole lot like a founder acquisition. Avishai Abrahami saw a founder who could build, sell, and support a product that users instantly paid for. That’s a rare breed. By buying Base44, Wix isn’t just getting a product—they’re locking in a formidable entrepreneurial operator. They’re also neutralizing a potential future competitor. For Shlomo, it’s the ultimate validation and a life-changing payday. But the real test is what happens in a year or two. Will Base44 still be its own product, or will its tech and its founder be fully absorbed into Wix’s core offerings? That’s often how these stories end, even when they start with backyard steaks.
